Sunday, April 5, 2015

10 Reasons - Omer Day 2

Here are ten reasons we all should be very concerned about a
climate catastrophe:

1. Science academies worldwide and 97% of climate scientists
believe that climate change is real, is largely caused by human activities, and
poses great threats to humanity.

2. Every decade since the 1970s has been warmer than the
previous decade and all of the 16 warmest years since temperature records were
kept in 1880 have been since 1998. 2014 was the warmest year recorded and the
last 330 months have all been warmer than the long term average for
corresponding months. This means, for example, that July, 2014 was warmer than
the average for all previous Julys since 1880.

4. There has been an increase in the number and severity of
droughts, wildfires, storms, and floods.

5. California
has been subjected to so many severe climate events recently that its governor,
Jerry Brown, stated that, “Humanity is on a collision course with nature.”

6. Many climates experts believe that we are close to a
tipping point when climate change will spiral out of control, with disastrous
consequences, unless major positive changes soon occur.

7. While climate scientists believe that 350 parts per
million (ppm) of atmospheric CO2 is a threshold value for climate
stability, the world reached 400 ppm in 2014, and the amount is increasing by 2-3
ppm per year.

8. While climate scientists hope that temperature increases
can be limited to two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), to avoid
disastrous climate change, the world is now on track for an average increase of
4 – 5 degrees Celsius.

9. The Pentagon and other military groups believe that
climate change will increase the potential for instability, terrorism, and war
by reducing access to food and clean water and by causing tens of millions of
desperate refuges fleeing from droughts, wildfire, floods, storms, and other
effects of climate change.

10. The conservative group ConservAmerica, formerly known as
‘Republicans for Environmental Protection,’ is very concerned about climate
change threats. They are working to end the denial about climate threats and
the urgency of working to avert them on the part of the vast majority of
Republicans, but so far with extremely limited success.

Today is the second day of the Omer.Today is the second day of the journey from bondage to revelation.

Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D., is the author of Judaism and
Vegetarianism, Judaism and Global Survival, Who Stole My Religion?
Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal our Imperiled
Planet, and Mathematics and Global Survival, and over 150 articles
and 25 podcasts at JewishVeg.com/schwartz. He is President of Jewish
Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) and the Society of Ethical and Religious
Vegetarians (SERV). He is associate producer of the 2007 documentary “A Sacred
Duty: Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal the World.”

by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen I teach a class called Loss & Transformation: Connecting Sacred Texts to Family Stories to Help Deal with Lo...

Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope

Ma'yan Tikvah is a congregation without walls in Wayland, MA, that holds services outdoors year round. It is a place of hope and trust for those seeking a meaningful connection to Judaism through study, prayer, experiences of nature, care of the environment, and social justice. Founded and guided by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen, Ma'yan Tikvah provides a place to explore Judaism in an informal and inclusive setting.